It was already dark when Rory Herritt and his son were driving home to Brennan Creek on the Adams Lake Road when suddenly they saw a dog that looked in trouble. There were no homes nearby, and Rory could see the dog was very thin with parts of his body showing only bare skin. The dog was shy, and ran away when Rory tried to approach him, so they decided to go home and tell Rory’s wife Suzanne about their encounter. This then proved to be the beginning of a rescue mission that was to stretch over a 10 day period.
When Suzanne first saw the emaciated German Shepherd mix dog she was reminded of another dog like this one that she managed to rescue about a year ago. That was also a Shepherd mix, and just like this dog had a skin condition resembling mange, which turned out to be only a food allergy; she wondered if there might be a connection between the two dogs.
Suzanne said, “I spent about six hours trying to coax the dog to me, but he remained standing at a distance and watched me. However, he eventually slept on a blanked I put down for him. I fed him daily, and spent time around him hoping I could get close, but he was too afraid. I was not leaving that dog out there, an animal’s life means too much to me.”
Knowing she needed some help Suzanne called Kent Kokoska, Senior Animal Protection Officer for the SPCA, as well as Jamie Wiltse, special Constable for the SPCA.
“I called them asking for help, and I was immensely thankful that they promised to come out and help the dog,” said Suzanne.
Jamie arranged for a live dog trap, and on Feb. 8, both Kent and Jamie came out to set the trap. The officers stayed on site, and visited with Suzanne for some time waiting for the dog. When they could wait no longer they left her in charge to watch the trap.
Suzanne says she went every day to put fresh hamburger into the trap, but had no luck in tempting the dog inside. Eventually she used more ingenuity and decided to place a nice piece of salmon in the trap which the dog could not resist; and finally on the afternoon of Feb. 11, she was able to call the SPCA officers to tell them the dog was safely trapped.
The SPCA came out from Kamloops the same day, and the Herritt family assisted them to bring the trap down the hill and into the vehicle. All those present at the completed rescue agreed it was a job well done.
Kent Kokoska reports that the dog, now named ‘Loki’, was taken to a veterinarian in Kamloops who provided the canine with medical treatment for the skin condition, which was later diagnosed as a flea allergy and skin infections were treated with antibiotics.
Loki is recovering well at the SPCA shelter and will be available for adoption when he is medically cleared,” said Kent. “He is a shy guy but warms up to people quickly, he actually likes being with people. He is friendly, and once he is ready for adoption we are looking forward to finding him his forever home.”
Jamie says she is concerned that almost a year ago a dog was found on that same stretch of road with a similar skin condition. “We just don’t want to think that anyone is callous enough to leave a dog out on an active logging road. If anyone knows how the dog ended up on that stretch of road they can contact me at 250-376-7722.”
Suzanne thanks both Kent and Jamie.
“Even though we sometimes feel upset with the SPCA, where would we be without them,” said Suzanne, “I hope that the donation I sent along with Loki is helpful with his recovery. And to Kent and Jamie, thank you from the bottom of my heart, I just know that Loki is smiling too. If we all work together we can make a difference, giving help to the many animals who don’t often get all that they need.”
